Various types of so-called customer provided equipment, such as Private Branch Exchanges (PBXs), provide a number of call processing options which allow business employees to customize the way in which they receive and establish telephone calls. For example, a business employee operating his/her business telephone station set may program an associated PBX so that the PBX (a) forwards to another business telephone station set that is served by the same PBX telephone calls directed to the employee's business telephone station set; (b) establishes a so-called conference connection; or (c) transfers an incoming call to another business telephone station set also served by the same PBX. Unfortunately, such employees do not enjoy all such telephone call capabilities in conjunction with using their home telephone station sets. At most, such employees, including other telephone subscribers, may subscribe to a few telephone services that are typically offered by their respective local exchange carriers. Such services include, for example, a voice mail message service, call waiting service and the aforementioned call forwarding service. However, one limitation associated with locally offered services, e.g., call forwarding, is that, typically, they can only be programmed from the subscriber's home telephone station set or a telephone station set located within the area served by the offering local exchange carrier.
It is often the case that a telephone subscriber who is at a distant location needs to place a long distance telephone call to his/her home telephone station set or to another telephone station set. As is well-known, such a person may place a log distance telephone call from a so-called coin telephone station set. However, to do so, a prescribed amount of money needs to be inserted in the coin telephone to cover the cost of the long distance call for an initial predetermined calling period. As is also well-known, a long distance call may be extended beyond the initial calling period only if additional money is inserted in the coin telephone. The burden associated with placing a long distance telephone call via a coin telephone station may be dealt with by placing such a call through a so-called long distance telephone operator. In such an instance, the cost of the long distance call may be charged to a credit card acceptable to the long distance carrier or "reversed" to the called telephone station. It can be appreciated that in the first instance, the calling subscriber must accept the burden associated with maintaining a credit card acceptable to the long distance carrier. It can also be appreciated that in the second instance the called party may not accept the charges for the long distance call.